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Tuesday, December 10, 2013

UCG Member Taking Heat For "Hey Jews" Parody

A current member of the UCG sent me this. I guess many in UCG think it is offensive. Apparently he is also getting ripped on several Facebook pages for this video.

It has always fascinated me at how Armstrongism pretends to be Jewish yet mocks them any chance it gets. Armstrongism has always claimed it has a "better" understanding of what it means to be Jewish and are better "spiritual" Jews than the real Jews.

25 comments:

Funny. Clever. Well done parody. Sounds close enough to the original for some to do a double take (have to listen carefully). And probably in bad taste, but that's never stopped anyone in the UCG before....

Now if United could just convince the Jews the validity of British Israelism, they'd have something. Unfortunately, most Jews are rather staunchly dead set against it and can you blame them? They are the ones with the real inheritance (apparently) and not some self-righteous pretenders trying to steal their thunder (and when it comes to thunder, watch out for the lightening that precedes it -- it can be a real killer, especially for false prophets who have Biblical judgment against them and have a 100% death rate!).

When one learns racial prejudice from one of the church's conspiracy theories, it doesn't take long to percolate over to every other distinct heritage. This is inappropriate, and should be embarrassing.

Since the Exodus never happened and the ten plagues on Egypt never happened it is very likely that the door post painting never happened either.

Does anyone ever stop to think that by the time the men could go out and kill about 600,000 thousands of lambs and paint door posts with their blood that the women could make leavened bread? After all, they aren't leaving until the next day or the day after that... How long did it take for the unknown, unnamed Pharaoh to decide and then the word get passed on to 2 1/2 million people to leave? How long did it take to walk to the Red Sea from Goshen...you know that there are just so many hours in a day, right?

If this was indeed made by a UCG member, I can only imagine that by "Jews" he's actually attempting to make a reference to all those people in UCG doing all those same things Jews do, if not literally, certainly figuratively, believing themselves to be "spiritual Jews" and therefore people who are beating the Jews at their own faith.

As if that wasn't an offensive enough concept to those people who actually practice the Jewish faith, everyone who doesn't know the peculiar circumstances in which this video was made are certainly going to interpret this as having been made by an open anti-Semite who isn't afraid to exhibit his racism for all to see, or else an idiot who isn't intelligent enough to realize how inappropriate this is, thinking it has merit as comedy.

It must be enough to drive observant Jews mad, how it is that half the world (xians and muslims) have taken their religion, tinkered with it, and then used it to not only declare themselves to be the "true sons," but also to demonize the Jews, who created the religion in the first place, as bastards and x-killers. It's the Jews own damn religion for Moshe's sake! Why do all these other guys crash their party at the 11th hour and then think they know what's going on better than those who threw the party in the first place? What makes these Johnnie-come-lately imposters think they can figure out the meaning of the Tanakh better than the Jews can, when the Jews were the ones who wrote it?

What is the point of picking on the Jews, (Judah, Benjamin and Levi)? Those were just three of the tribes given the commands of God, smearing blood on the door posts, etc. What about Reuben, Simeon, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Dan, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph's sons...(Manasseh and Ephraim...Jacocb's/Israel's other sons/tribes in Egypt?This isn't Armstrongism...it's Biblical historical facts!

This video was indeed made by a UCG member, a young man who lives in Michigan. He is not an employee of the church, or has any official capacity, although he attended the Ambassador Bible Center of UCG.

He is a graphics design guy, and apparently fancies himself as creative.

In perusing his Facebook page, business page etc, I see an eclectic , out of the box , free thinker, who is trying hard to be innovative , creative and funny. Hats off to him for not being a typical COG yellow pencil.

The mistake he makes here is targeting by an ethnicity, culture or race, which is a taboo now in todays culture. It wasn't that funny, and was a touch weird.

Ok, hey , when you are young, you are going to make a couple of mistakes, and perhaps lack some wisdom. On the other hand, if you are not having a few "fails" , then you are not trying. Even Babe Ruth struck out on occasion. This young man has a plethora of creative stuff he has done, and some of it does look cool.

Yes, even in my "maturity", I stick my foot in my mouth on occasion, and have done so on this forum as well. I will keep "swinging the bat", even though I strike out on occasion too, or write something that I later regret.

The video is perhaps in bad taste, but I can't classify it as "sinful". That being the case, and his lack of any official UCG status, puts this video in the category of "personal expression" and is , frankly, nobodies business but his own, and certainly does not lay in the purview of "church oversight".

My question, Joe, would be does the young man realize that he has made a mistake, and has he taken this video down? An apology to the Jewish community would certainly be in order. Racism isn't just a taboo. It is a sickness.

Joe, you can say it's "nobodies business but his own", but he placed it on youtube for the world to see, which, at that point makes it ok for anyone to "make it their business" and comment on it as they'd like.

The video is a waste of a grown man's time. Singing is awful, subject matter is weird and iffy.It is okay to make sport with your own kind but not with others.If this was Hey Muslims or Hey Blacks and the subject in their ballparks this would be a nightmare.

I like it. Jews are allowed to make jokes and fun of Jews, same as blacks are allowed to make N-word jokes and do all the time. I have heard plenty of Jewish standup comedians whose material was all Jewish/Hebrew/Yiddish.In this case WCG thought they were Israelites mainly of Manasseh and Ephraim who were descendants of the chosen son Joseph, and in fact even better than Jews. We were super Jews in fact the real Jews.

I think DNA has kind of spoilt the Jewish/Israelite fantasy, or has it? I heard Wade Cox says most modern Jews are not really Jews at all but descendents of Ham and that's why the DNA don't match.

You wrote: "My question, Joe, would be does the young man realize that he has made a mistake, and has he taken this video down? An apology to the Jewish community would certainly be in order. Racism isn't just a taboo. It is a sickness."

I don't know whether Joe realizes if he made a mistake or not, but I suspect if each of us thinks about our lives and how we think about other people we may conclude that each of us has that racism in us to one degree or another.

would not surprise me. Its funny how people will twist and turn even in the internet age to try to hold onto a story they like. When I left WCG I still believed BI to some degree myself for some years. It wasnt until I decided to read Isaiah and Jeremiah myself, as books, that I realized BI was built on an unlikely assumption.

For anyone who has studied graphics design and made and placed many videos on Youtube already, he should be well aware of ethics concerns in using that medium.In fact, his only comment of, "I mean no offense by this parody." he posted with the uploaded video makes it clear that he knew it would cause offense. (Either that, or he's a complete idiot- which I doubt he is.)

I think the problem lies in the fact that the typical Armstrongite church member is rather spiritually infantile in that he sees his own church's teachings as 'of God' and all others as below his church's, and totally mockworthy. (As was previously stated, being better Jews than actual currently practicing Jews are.)

On the bright side, he may leave the UCG in the future and use his talents to create a Youtube video ripping on the UCG's ridiculous and false claim that they are a democratic organization, among other things.Maybe a parody of the Beach Boys' "I Get Around", called "I Get To Vote"

However, here is the context at BANNED. Someone who happens to be in the UCG, without any official status, or title, or policy making abilility makes an error. Somehow, this is supposed to be relevant "news" and is supposed to be connected to the overall image of the UCG corporation.

This in effect is also a bias and discrimination. It is implying that because one UCG person is "stupid" that the organization is stupid, or all of its members must be stupid too.

Grossly unfair and prejudiced.

I have a client who is Mormon. A couple of years back , when a California Highway Patrol officer, who was Momon, raped a woman while on duty out in the remote California desert, the press constantly and consistently referred to the perpetatrator as "A Mormon". My client was absolutely disgusted by this deliberate media circus in connecting the Mormon Church to a terrible and hideous event.

I think Mormonism is complete wackiness. However, I agreed with my client that this was a biased and unfair association made by the press and media, and that it was not right.

There is not one human organization, of more than 50 people, whether it be by race, color, religion, you name it, that does not have BAD PEOPLE in it. It is grossly unfair and WRONG to paint brush and entire sub-class of people because of the actions of an individual.

It is not the responsibility of UCG to police members, and monitor their stupidity. Unless someone is actively recruiting people into destructive sin or heresy, the private or even public idiocy of people is their own business.

Byker, I agree with you, I would love to see the young man delete his video and offer an apology. This would be good taste. However, Im not accountable to him, nor even know the young man. Frankly their are not hours in eternity to monitor and respond to the legion of bad taste that is found in the human condition, and my "empirical interests" have better time use than to try and communicate with this guy.

Hopefully, the flack he has received will suffice. However, I repeat my thought that to be an apologist against the UCG , or any human group, even the groups like Pack, Flurry or Weinland, because of the isolated actions of one person without official status of that group, is grossly prejudiced and bigoted.

To do so is having the pot call the kettle black. There is plenty to discuses, criticize and debate about on the "official" COG level, than to try to bring this down to the most minute personal level.

Well, Joe, forget that it was a random UCG member for a sec and read the latter paragraph...

"It has always fascinated me at how Armstrongism pretends to be Jewish yet mocks them any chance it gets. Armstrongism has always claimed it has a "better" understanding of what it means to be Jewish and are better "spiritual" Jews than the real Jews."

I think that tells you the real context here. It triggered the comment for the poster's mind. Doesn't matter if it came from UCG, PCG, LCG, COGwa, VCG, CGG, etc.

I don't see Gary specifically picking on UCG on this issue. I was part of Armstrongism for well over 30 years and I heard that same consistent story and attitude. If UCG still is doing this then maybe they need to take a look at their beliefs instead of getting angry about it being pointed out to them.

There are many issues involved here. This case perfectly illustrates how the individual acts of members can in some ways unfairly reflect on an entire organization. Personally, I cringe every time a criminal or insane person uses a gun in some horrible way, because certain people of certain mindsets will automatically conclude that guns appeal to a certain profile, and that those of us who love our Second Amendment rights are all potential criminals or mass murderers just waiting to happen. Before a bunch of doctors, lawyers, and other professionals got into Harley Davidsons, the general public seemed to think that those of us who rode were into drugs, rape, and every other rotten thing under the sun.

I guess the problem we have here, and yes, this is an unfair stereotype, is that British Israelism, which some have identified as the very cornerstone of Armstrongism, might be considered to be a form of racial supremacy. Unfortunately, Anglo-Saxon peoples are portrayed in this theory as being superior not only to Gentile peoples, but also over any Jewish people who do not accept Jesus as Messiah. I personally regard all peoples in two basic categories: those who are saved, and those who are yet to be saved. Nobody, by virtue of ethnicity is either superior, or inferior, but obviously in the long term scheme of things, it is preferable for people of all ethnicities to be saved.

So far as individual members are concerned, most of us realize that opinions and tastes vary widely. British Israelism effects the thinking of different peoples in different ways. This theory is just something that Armstrongist theology would probably have been a whole lot better off without. You can get to the same place, in a much more loving way, through the "Christian Israelism" that was taught by St. Paul, and is embraced by mainstream Christian theology. It's not an ethnic elitist thing, it is a condition of the heart.

Obviously, UCG is to blame for this vile video; it stinks just like the racist vomit that Armstrongism has churned and spewed for decades.

This is not the case of a lowly member expressing his personal views. This man has perhaps independently, but nevertheless dutifully, imposed his personal, creative spin over the official UCG party line.

If UCG did not endorse this video they'd be quick to condemn it - as many groups often do when a rogue member spouts defamatory content.

Where is official UCG on this matter? Have they merely sent Joe the Mole to instruct us not to blame them for the heat, bursting into flame, as this video reflects antisemitism off the UCG mirror of hatred, which is anchored to Hell by superstitions, suppositions of superiority?

Alas, we can look clearly into this video and ONLY see Armstrongism shining through - and attribute it ONLY to UCG for making it endure.

"Someone who happens to be in the UCG, without any official status, or title, or policy making abilility makes an error. Somehow, this is supposed to be relevant "news" and is supposed to be connected to the overall image of the UCG corporation. This in effect is also a bias and discrimination. It is implying that because one UCG person is "stupid" that the organization is stupid, or all of its members must be stupid too. Grossly unfair and prejudiced."

By that same token let us agree that the opposing scenario should also hold true. Anyone in UCG who is not an official representative of UCG who does anything notable, noble, or laudable should also not be used to polish the image of the UCG corporation, nor should it be cited as evidence that some "god" is at work there. Such things are equally irrelevant, grossly unfair, prejudiced, biased and discriminatory to the UCG corporation.

By that same token let us also agree that the reverse scenario should also hold true. When people with official status, title, or policy making ability make errors, then, that should be "relevant 'news'" that is "connected to the overall image of the UCG corporation." If the Chairman of the Council of Elders, Melvin Rhodes were immoral then the organization must also at that time be immoral.

If you don't think this should hold, then you must think UCG's lollipop image should be unfalsifiable. Failing that, you've got to admit that a somewhat more nuanced analysis is in order.